Jerusalem Marathon

In breve

Informazioni Jerusalem Marathon

The event will include several tracks – marathon (42.2 km), half-marathon (21.1 km), 10 km race, competitive 5 km race, popular 5 km race, family 1.7km race and an 800 m community race. This is one of Israel's largest marathons, with 30,000 participants of which hundreds are elite runners and runners from abroad.

The various tracks pass by fascinating historical sites that illuminate 3,000 years of the history of Jerusalem, Israel's capital. The International Jerusalem Winner Marathon combines physical endurance with exquisite landscapes, fresh mountain air and unique culture and heritage sites such as the Israeli Knesset, Machane Yehuda Marketplace, Mount Scopus, the Old City, David's Tower, Haas Promenade and more.

It is guaranteed to be a challenging, thrilling and unforgettable experience for all runners.

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Partenza:

Israel's parliament

Parliament of Israel, Jerusalem, Israel

Traguardo:

Sacher Park

Sacher Park, Jerusalem, Israel

Difficoltà

rolling

Attrattive

The Jerusalem Winner Marathon held in Israel's capital is one of the most unique marathons in the world, combining history with a challenging racing experience. The various tracks trace 3,000 years of history in this fascinating city that is holy to the world's three monotheistic religions. Tens of thousands of runners, representing different religions and countries from all over the world participate in the marathon each year and experience Jerusalem's cultural and historical landmarks, the city's unique routes and landscapes (see course map) and an inspiring and unforgettable athletic experience.

Holy to Jews, Christians and Muslims, Jerusalem's Old City is one of the world's foremost pilgrimage destinations. A repository of sacred buildings and relics, it is a place where the oft-abused descriptor 'living history' really does apply – here you can walk in the footsteps of prophets, pray in buildings constructed by order of caliphs and kings, and overnight in hospices where Crusaders and cardinals have slumbered. The soundtrack is of church bells, the muezzin's call and the shofar (ram's horn), and the streets smell of everything from church incense to the heady aromas of the spice souq (market). It's a sensory and spiritual experience unlike any other.

There's plenty to see outside the Old City, too, including the hugely impressive Israel Museum and the powerful Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial. They, together with the Old City's manifest attractions, make Jerusalem the number-one tourist destination in Israel for very good reason.

Panoramica

The starting point of the marathon is Israel's parliament, the Knesset, in the western part of the city. Runners thence loop around the Giv'at Ram campus of the Hebrew University, pass alongside the valley of the cross, and cross through various neighborhoods on their way up to Hebrew University's Mount Scopus campus in eastern Jerusalem. The route then descends to the Old City, taking runners through Jaffa Gate and the Armenian Quater and out Zion Gate, on their way to the Jerusalem Forest. The race's finishing point is Sacher Park. Jerusalem's hilly terrain makes the marathon especially challenging. The religious and ethnic diversity of the Jerusalem Marathon led one Haartez reporter to describe the race as "the most cosmopolitan event around."

Jerusalem Marathon Trivia

Half-marathon races had been held in the city prior to the first official Jerusalem Marathon in 2011, but it was not until Jerusalem mayor Nir Barkat pushed for a race conforming to international standards that the municipality made the full marathon an official annual event in the city.